This is all nice and I agree with the general sentiment -- we CAN win any game, we can win the Super Bowl this year, and of course I will watch every game they play and root for them and hope for the best.

But the question isn't "what's possible?" Remember that it's entirely possible we'll lose every game, too. The question is, based on what we've seen this year, how good are we? Where are we? What kind of team is this?

It's frustrating because this team is the most inconsistent team in football (and was last year, too). Stretches of dominance -- long stretches in fact -- are matched by shorter, but still costly, stretches of pedestrian-to-shitty play.

My view is that this is about a 8-8 or 9-7 type of team that's played an easy schedule. I think our running game is a total fraud, the result of when we either get a lead or pass effectively. The OL is a shambles. And for all the good things that are happening on defense (the play of the linebackers and corners have been outstanding), there are lots of troubling things (Hampton and Polamalu are either playing hurt or they've regressed somehow; Anthony Smith is a disappointment).

No, I'm not "quitting" or turning off the TV. Although the Tivo is forever off-limits for Stiller games.

You know that a large part of this is just post-loss frustration. Not that I disagree with much of the analysis I've read, but this was just an especially frustrating loss, IMO. I absolutely could not believe it.

Still, I'll be wearing the jersey to work on Monday just like always. And I'm still searching for tickets for Dec. 16.

Ha! I knew all you loony-tunes mofos weren't quitting. Were all of the losses crippling? Yes. Did they suck in the most major of ways? Yes. Were they all close and even contested until the end? Pretty much. They're 7-3 and holding the 3rd seed in the AFC. That could actually improve, but that's pretty much where they are and is likely where they'll remain.

That will be a tough road in the playoffs. But it is what it is. We can wonder about all the possible tough scenarios, but I'd rather wonder about all those teams wanting to avoid the Steelers in the playoffs.

These guys won't be an easy out.

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"I like David Bowie, he was always my favorite member of Tin Machine."- Rodney Anonymous

The Jets just beat the Steelers . . . so doesn't that mean the Steelers can beat the Pats? Anything can happen on any given Sunday.

It's not over. The Pats can play lights out all through September-December for all I care . . . it's what happens in January and February that matters.

We have the inside track to a play off spot. I'm not thinking draft until we're officially out of contention for the whole shebangabang.

I agree with all that except the draft talk. I'll stay hopeful that we can turn things around and go on a 2005-type run, but my opinion is that it's not happening this year for reasons I've stated before: wild inconsistency of play, except for the OL which consistently plays like shit. I'm not tuning out, not saying anything's impossible.

But on the other hand, I'm not going to just be blindly rah-rah. I've invested several decades of my life to being a Steeler fan, and I feel I have the right to critique the team when it plays poorly, or to point out ways I think they could improve for a more realistic future run at the Lombardi. That's the case here: we have some terrific guys but are lacking at a few key positions. It won't take a huge makeover, and maybe we'll have some of that 2005 magic dust again transform that soggy OL into some championship machine.

To talk about the draft, though, is just to be able to admit that, yes, maybe Sean Mahan isn't really up to the level of a Webby or a Dirt or even a Jeff Hartings. Maybe Sean Mahan really does wind up on his ass a lot. Or, that maybe Marvel Smith's Pro Bowl days are behind him, at least as a LT. Maybe he'd be better suited to RT. Maybe no once else on our team can really play LT for more than spot duty.

If saying our DL is getting older, and without Aaron Smith we're less effective, means that I am giving up on the season, then, well, whatever. I think we need some DL depth at DE and NT. I guess that's a downer. I guess it's a downer that we need a bunch of OL guys so Ben doesn't keep getting sacked 4 or 7 or 9 times a game. It's anti-team to even broach the notion that if Ben weren't so mobile, maybe he'd be pushing Carr's sack record.

All I'm saying is that I'm keeping my expectations in check, hoping for the best, and not wearing any goddamn blinders. I fully expect us to make the playoffs, probably now as a third seed after shitting the bed in NY, but whatever. Rah rah. Playoffs, yay. I do not think we will beat NE in the regular season, but I will hope that the Jets game galvanizes this team the way close final loss to Cinci did in 2005. I'll keep hoping that things come together, and maybe we can surprise the Pats in January. But this is a message board, where opinions are offered, and my opinion is that we're just not there yet, and won't be there until we fix a few things.

To talk about the draft, though, is just to be able to admit that, yes, maybe Sean Mahan isn't really up to the level of a Webby or a Dirt or even a Jeff Hartings. Maybe Sean Mahan really does wind up on his ass a lot. Or, that maybe Marvel Smith's Pro Bowl days are behind him, at least as a LT. Maybe he'd be better suited to RT. Maybe no once else on our team can really play LT for more than spot duty.

If saying our DL is getting older, and without Aaron Smith we're less effective, means that I am giving up on the season, then, well, whatever. I think we need some DL depth at DE and NT. I guess that's a downer. I guess it's a downer that we need a bunch of OL guys so Ben doesn't keep getting sacked 4 or 7 or 9 times a game. It's anti-team to even broach the notion that if Ben weren't so mobile, maybe he'd be pushing Carr's sack record.

See, threads like this annoy me, because it almost seems to me like an opportunity for certain posters to puff out their chests and say "Ha! I'm more of a hardcore fan than you!"

No one here thinks the Steelers' season is "over"; that's an exaggerated point of view to make those people look like idiots.

However, I think a lot of people, myself included, realize the Steelers' chances of winning XLII took a STATISTICAL blow by losing that game, almost guaranteeing them of playing in the Wild Card round.

Yeah, upsets happen, but statistically, the OVERWHELMING MAJORITY of teams that reach the Super Bowl do so by having a first round bye. And THAT'S what people are upset about. They are no less fans than anyone else here; they just logically know that our chances are now not as great statistically.

What's wrong with that?

.WiH.

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I don't care if Lovie Smith and Tony Dungy are black. Good for them. But that doesn't change the way I feel about them. The longer we keep looking at guys like Tony Dungy and Lovie Smith as "BLACK HEAD COACHES" as opposed to just "coaches" the longer race will continue to be a problem. --DoctorJohnnyFever

However, I think a lot of people, myself included, realize the Steelers' chances of winning XLII took a STATISTICAL blow by losing that game, almost guaranteeing them of playing in the Wild Card round.

None of this is true as the Steelers are guaranteed nothing right now, good or bad. It's not like they're four games behind the Colts with four to play.

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"The MGS board is regarded here as a board with adult rated content. There are virtually no rules. There are no words that are inappropriate and no subject that cannot be discussed. Should you feel the need to get crazy, do it there. You will be welcomed with open arms."